A Banksy Artwork Sold for $1.4 Million Then Self-Destructed

Normally, art auctions are for the sort of people who worry about tax havens and disguising inheritances. So there's great schadenfreude in artist Banksy's latest prank.

On Friday, one of Banksy's works was auctioned off for nearly $1.4 million at Sotheby's in London. Then, once the sale was finalized, a paper shredder hidden in the base of the frame came to life and ripped the painting apart in front of the horrified crowd.

According to the Associated Press, "Girl With Balloon" fetched more than three times its pre-sale estimates, and the price tag matched a record high for Banksy. But if the artist expected this to be some middle finger to a hyper-capitalist art world, it likely backfired. Per the AP:

Sotheby’s — which had noted before the sale that the work’s ornate gilded frame was “an integral element of the artwork chosen by Banksy himself” — expressed surprise at the incident.

“It appears we just got Banksy-ed,” said Alex Branczik, head of contemporary European art at the auction house.

The auction house said it was “in discussion about next steps” with the buyer. Some art-market watchers have suggested the work could be worth even more in its shredded state.

We're looking forward to Banksy's next auction, when he sneaks into the buyer's house while they're away and fills the whole thing with snakes.